The first domino falls – Germans drop out of Youth America’s Cup

After becoming aware of the tragic death of professional and Olympic sailor Andrew Simpson (GBR), who lost his life on May 9 as part of an America’s Cup accident on the Artemis Racing AC72, the Sailing Team Germany (STG) and the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV) have withdrawn their entry from the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup that is planned for San Francisco on September 1-4.

“The tragic accident has prompted us to evaluate our participation in the Youth America’s Cup from scratch. When it comes to such a tragedy for the world’s best sailors, we want to exclude the risk of endangering the health of our athletes and Olympic ambitions. I knew Andrew well from ancient times and laser’s and am shocked by his death, “explains Klaus lame, NRV director of sport, the unanimous decision by the STG and NRV.

“The forces that act when sailing a 22-foot racing catamaran are hardly manageable even for professionals. The risk of an accident is constantly competed. Hopefully the management of the America’s Cup takes this incident as the impetus for the future, the format and sports equipment to thoroughly rethink,” said Oliver Schwall, managing director at STG and former Tornado world champion.

The German team had qualified in February in an elimination series with a total of twelve junior teams scores for the final. The event is to be sailed in AC45s.